Free Isabel and the Wolf: (Part 3) by Ariana Hawkes Page A

to me,” Isabel said.
    “He just wants to keep us entertained, and any time someone shows an interest in what he does, he can’t help but try to engage them even further.”
    “Can’t say I’m complaining,” Isabel said. “It’s so nice to be out here.” She’d watched the route as they’d driven there, and, as far as her limited knowledge of Gila stretched, she judged that they were nowhere near Peter’s campsite, and, for that, she was grateful.
    Isabel and Josie walked for maybe an hour, Josie leading her deep into the woods, into places where the undergrowth was very dense and they had to pick their way. They found nothing at all to indicate that a wolf had passed by. Josie stopped and wiped the sweat from her forehead.
    “Well, I think I’m just about done,” she said.
    “For the past five minutes that’s exactly what I’ve been hoping you’d say,” Isabel replied. “Now, how the hell do we get back to the truck?”
    “Oh, it’s this way,” Josie said, and strode ahead, weaving in and out of trees. Isabel stumbled after her. Not long afterwards, the truck came into view.
    “How on earth did you do that?” she exclaimed.
    “Call it a good sense of direction!” Josie said with a smile. They climbed into the front of the truck, eager for the comfort of actual seats.
    While they’d been chatting away about this and that for the past hour, Isabel had been thinking about Josie’s reactions to Peter.
    “Did you and Peter know each other as children?” she asked, hoping the element of surprise would prevent Josie from obscuring her true feelings. Josie didn’t answer immediately, but, when she did, there was a new hardness to her tone.
    “We never met, but I’d heard about him. He was this wonderboy, back in my family’s ancestral lands. Everyone talked about him as if he was some kind of prince.”
    “You met him for the first time quite recently?”
    “Yes.”
    “And did he live up to the legend?”
    “He did.” Josie’s eyes were brighter than ever. “He’s an incredible person. As soon as we met, I forgave him all the jealousy his existence had caused me in my childhood.” Isabel looked at her wordlessly. There were so many questions she wanted to ask. Like, what makes him so incredible (apart from his abundant good looks and sexual talents)? Or, what kind of work does he do to keep himself in brand-new Harley Davidsons? Hell, even his last name would be good to know!
    “Are you still finding Petre intense?” Josie asked, sounding like she had to force herself to ask the question. Isabel nodded, not wanting to reveal too much. “He comes from a very different background, with very strong traditions and beliefs. Sometimes that can be difficult to meld with modern USA.”
    “I can imagine,” Isabel said. The look Josie gave her was full of pity.
    “If only you could,” she said, at last. Isabel turned her thoughts over.
    “He had some kind of family emergency last week?” she said, half statement, half question.
    “Yes it’s very sad. His family is sick, and they thought there was a ray of hope, but it turned out to be nothing.”
    “I was sorry to hear that. Is it his immediate family, or is your family affected too?” Isabel asked carefully.
    “My family shares the same – genetic limitation.” The pitch of Josie’s voice lifted and the sentence ended in a bitter laugh. “But it’s been pretty much bred out of my branch of the family.” Josie had been staring out of the window, but now she turned her glittering-coal eyes on Isabel. “Look, Rob doesn’t know that Peter and I are related. Doesn’t even know he exists. And I don’t want him to know. I hope I can count on you to not mention it to him?”
    “Of course,” Isabel replied, noting the slight narrowing of eyes that made it more of a threat than an entreaty.
    At that moment, Isabel’s head jerked to the right, as something moved at the edge of her vision. She and Josie both screamed as the